I see a lot of medical and clinical personnel wearing their scrubs outside the office and throughout town. How does this affect the office in maintaining infection control upon their return?

Tricia Thomann, Lawrence Memorial Hospital's infection control practitioner, said: "Many medical personnel in the community, including dental, veterinary and physician offices, wear scrubs. Most of our hospital units require staff to provide their own scrubs, which means they wear them to and from work. The hospital follows the CDC requirements for isolation, so that means if a patient has an illness or infection that can survive on environmental surfaces (including scrubs), barriers are provided for staff to prevent cross-contamination of the infection. These barriers include disposable gowns that cover the staff's clothing or scrubs. The gowns are discarded upon leaving the patient room, which prevents the spread of the infection throughout the hospital, the community and the staff member's home."